Sharanagatam

                                      It is confusing. Hard to understand. Sometimes it feels like a tragedy waiting to unfold. Adi Shankaracharya, in Bhaja Govindam, calls this world "iha saṁsāre bahu dustāre"  , this samsara is exceedingly difficult to cross. Perhaps not because the path is hidden, but because the wrong path often looks indistinguishable from the right one. Adharma rarely arrives announcing itself. Sometimes it comes dressed as duty. Sometimes as loyalty. Sometimes as gratitude. And sometimes, it comes dressed as dharma itself. Duryodhana's dilemma was one thing. Karna's was another. Duryodhana gave Karna what the world had denied him. Honor, friendship, recognition, and a kingdom. Out of gratitude and loyalty, Karna stood by him until the very end. Was Karna standing on the side of dharma? The Mahabharata refuses to offer an easy answer. Vibhishana faced a similar dile...

  It is in our innate nature to avoid suffering and to optimize for pleasure, especially prolonged pleasure. Today, it almost feels strange and worrisome when someone laughs wholeheartedly in the face of adversity. In a world that equates pain with damage, joy in adversity looks almost abnormal, and they may even be (mis)diagnosed with some mental illness. The more you eat neem leaves, though initially bitter, at some point even the neem leaves will taste sweet. But have you ever seen someone reach a stage where they can truly claim it is sweet? Only a few can. Only a few know the secret. Did Adi Shankaracharya show any bitterness about illness? Did Ramakrishna Paramahamsa ever lose his playfulness despite the body suffering from throat cancer? Did Bhadrachala Ramadasu give up his devotion to Lord Rama when he was tortured for years? Did people forget Vishnu under the tyranny of Hiranyakashipu? No! They sailed that ship of samsara, the ship of suffering. Today, people just take ...

The ascent and the descent Arohana and Avarohana Life oscillates between notes  Each note adding uncertainty. Then you enter the score An unexpected note Not a high, not a low But a pleasant G amaka Just a handful of Atukulu from Kuchela It was enough for Krishna to give him all. A single thought of you brings ecstasy Perhaps you are Krishna , after all. Like Urmila in her silent Nidra , I would wait years in quiet longing Enduring, unseen, with only the Narayana as my witness. The longing becomes the very bridge to grace. Tyagaraja and Parvati , Ramadasu and Kamala companions in devotion and song. May our harmony lead us ever closer to the Divine, Our love becoming the Raga that carries us to Moksha . Grace of the three divine mothers shines through you. With  Kanyadanam , our  Grahastha Ashrama  begins. Only with you as my partner am I fit to uphold  Dharma Together, we walk the path as prescribed by the  Shastras . Everyone says, " Kadha Kanch...

  It’s just neurons, transmitters, and DNA’s old code Yet the feeling arrives like a spell, like alchemy unfolding. In the day, a thought of you drifts in And my mind scatters like butterflies in a sunlit garden. At night, it returns soft, glowing And the fireflies of memory rise, comforting me. I don’t know anymore if I love you or the echo I’ve made of you Either way, no other feeling fits anymore. I dissolve in thoughts of you and feel myself disappear But then I realize I’m flying in the ocean of madness. Longing follows me everywhere I go Even shadows carry the shape of dreams that can never be true. Like tides pulled by the moon’s silent pull, my heart rises and falls with your nearness or your silence. The veena hums even though I lack the skill, like a pearl that shines far beneath, never fading, never mine. I’m still searching for a place inside me untouched by you but my heart has become your kingdom, where you reign as Queen .

  She waits beyond the veil so bright, The Mother is draped in endless light. Her ముక్కుపుడక (nose ring) shines majestically, Even a fleeting thought of it can light the way. She shaped this vast and fleeting ground, Where forms may rise, where echoes sound. She lets them wander, run, and stray, Yet watches close, not far away. And when the bubble breaks apart, Illusions fade, and the stage departs. She stands with arms so strong, so wide, To take them into her warm embrace. Yet never does she halt or chain, Some may wish to play again. Each time they see her, bright and vast, Their steps erase, and forget the past. It takes great strength, a steady mind, To break the spell, to look, to find. To see what was, to stand and stay, And not heed the call to drift away. But those whose hands bear not a stain, Who leave no mark of loss or pain, Who harm no field, nor beast, nor breath, She lifts beyond the grasp of death. And once within her boundless space, No st...

1. గురు నమస్కారం ఓం మహాగణాధిపతయే నమః శ్రీ గురుభ్యో నమః   హరిః ఓం 2. శుచిః అపవిత్రః పవిత్రో వా సర్వావస్థాం గతోఽపి వా యః స్మరేత్పుండరీకాక్షం స బాహ్యాభ్యన్తరశ్శుచిః పుండరీకాక్ష పుండరీకాక్ష పుండరీకాక్షాయ నమః (ఉద్ధరిణి లో నీళ్లు తీసుకొని కుడి చేతి మధ్యవేలు తో మీద జల్లుకుంటూ మంత్రం చెప్పాలి ) 3. పురాణ ఆచమనం   ఓం కేశవాయ స్వాహా ఓం నారాయణాయ స్వాహా ఓం మాధవాయ స్వాహా ఓం గోవిందాయ నమః (మొదటి మూడు నామాలకు ఆచమనం చేసి నాలుగవ నామానికి చెయ్యి శుభ్రం చేసుకోవాలి.మిగిలిన నామాలు మాములుగా పఠిస్తే  చాలు ) ఓం విష్ణవే నమః ఓం మధుసూదనాయ నమః ఓం త్రివిక్రమాయ నమః ఓం వామనాయ నమః ఓం శ్రీధరాయ నమః ఓం హృషీకేశాయ నమః ఓం పద్మనాభాయ నమః ఓం దామోదరాయ నమః ఓం సంకర్షణాయ నమః ఓం వాసుదేవాయ నమః ఓం ప్రద్యుమ్నాయ నమః ఓం అనిరుద్ధాయ నమః ఓం పురుషోత్తమాయ నమః ఓం అధోక్షజాయ నమః ఓం నారసింహాయ నమః ఓం అచ్యుతాయ నమః ఓం జనార్ధనాయ నమః ఓం ఉపేంద్రాయ నమః ఓం హరయే నమః ఓం శ్రీకృష్ణాయ నమః స్మృత్యాచమనము ౧. త్రిరాచామేత్ (స్వాహా | స్వాహా | స్వాహా ) ౨. ద్విఃపరిమృజ్య (పెదవులు) ౩. సకృదుపస్పృశ్య (పెదవులు) ౪. దక్షిణేన పాణినా సవ్యంప్రోక్ష్య (ఎడమ...

Beneath a sky where day and night entwine, The stars emerge as dusk begins to shine... Those are the starting lines of a beautiful poem, But anyway, today I`m not in the mood to write one. So for a change, let's not take the poetic route. And hop straight onto the bandwagon of my thought train of my memories. That beautiful evening, I was  at  Bugle Rock Park ,  a place I love and look forward to visiting  whenever I'm in Bengaluru. I was sitting on a rock, Opposite to me was my dear friend, Sincerely trying to meditate. I had one lollipop in my upper shirt pocket. I removed the wrapper of the candy and placed it in the mud. After a moment, I saw an ant, approaching the candy, It inspected it for some time, with its antlers. After another moment or two, I saw that the whole candy was swarmed by ants.  I started observing the trail of ants leading to the candy. Individually their movements were completely random. But the group of ants together displa...